Safe Speed Forums

driving southbound on the M1 this weekend through the road works...J10 thru 6, signs indicated 40 with "average speed checks"..I am led to believe there are SPEC cameras there which measure your speed going in/out over a certain distance...I think I may of been caught on camera as I was probably doing 50 ....Anyway given that I have never been summoned/ticketed I was wondering how I can keep my 100 percent clean sheet (in the event of being caught out this time)....A fairly reliable source advised that when you recieve the "automated letter" instructing to make the £60.00 payment etc you should simply throw it away !!, there is a high probability after that , that you will hear nothing more due to the high volumes being processed and because of the additional costs involved for administration/sending out further correspondence registered post. Anyone have any experience with this...In addition I may well be going overseas next week indefinately so I was also wondering if I should call up to determine if my vehicle was picked up by a camera or not !!. Thanks

Two things.

1. SPECS cameras work in pairs. They calculate the average speed between them. The fact that you were doing 50 as you passed one of them isn't relevant, if your average speed was below the threshold (which for 40 I believe is 46).

2. I got a NIP (your "automated letter" presumably) from North Wales Police. (Well everybody knows that by now .) I was apparently doing exactly the threshold (35 in a 30 area). Anyway... I dumped it in the letter rack and forgot about it. They didn't, and after 30 days they sent a warning that if I didn't respond within a further 7 days I would be taken to court. I'll never know whether they were bluffing, but I didn't particulary care to test the point. If you challenge a NIP you are more likely to end up with a larger fine and/or more points, as you will most likely be deemed to be "guilty until proved innocent, and wasting police time".

For more enlightened advice go to www.pepipoo.com.

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Brian

If Im unsure who was driving that day will the SPEC camera (s) be able to provide photo evidence, I was under the impression they mearly "scan" the registration plate ??. Thanks

There appears to be a number of ways to challenge these things, and for some people (I know 1 and possibly soon 2) ignoring NiPs has been done and nothing more has been said or done.

Other action includes beating them at their game, ie playing on technicalities (they want cash out of you for a technical offence). E.G If you are the registered keeper then the NiP must be served with 14 days (allowing a day or two for delivery) and it must be sent 1st class. Ensuring that the temporary limit has actually been approved and the signing was correct can also yield dividends.

You mention the “Hamilton” defence In which case you need to show that you have been diligent in trying to ascertain the driver at the time, and this will usually mean a visit to court to see if the Magistrate believes you or not – the more questions you ask the SCP, times etc, “anything they can provide to help you identify…” etc will help, as will providing a list of possible drivers. However admiting the alleged offence on a public web forum prior to going to court may not help, and in fact could cause some further problems.

The PACE Letter also seems popular and it seems used to good effect, but as has been said get yourself over to Pepipoo and have a good read. If you do get a a NiP then post on there in the manner requested.

Either way if it goes to court and you get nervous then plead guilty, ok the fine will be more but at least you can sleep easy that night knowing that you have not contributed funds to the parasites that are feeding off the increasingly poor road safety they love (IMO).

Cheers

Paul

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It is difficult to get a man to understand something when his job depends on not understanding it.

Upton Sinclair

There will be an overview shot of your car (plate is captured separately), but the camera might be too high to see the occupant inside.

is there any harm in calling the relevant ticket office to see if your car was caught on candid camera ??. thanks

If you remember driving through the zone you will probably remember who was driving....

I would wait till the 14 days are up. Then you still have another 28 days to work out what you are going to do next...

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Speed camera policy Kills